Genesis 45
Genesis • Sermon • Submitted
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Introduction
Introduction
We turn our attention tonight to Genesis once again and we will be picking up in chapter 45.
And it just so happens that tonight’s lesson fits well into what we discussed this morning from and 3 and because what we are going to see at last out of Joseph is not what we might have been expecting.
In fact it is the exact opposite of what we might expect.
In case there is anyone here tonight that hasn’t been here as we’ve journeyed through Genesis, we’ll do a quick recap of how we have arrived here in with Joseph and his 11 brothers standing together, with Judah begging Joseph to allow him to take the place of Benjamin his younger brother.
This whole story regarding Joseph began back in chapter 37, where we learned that Joseph was the favorite son of Jacob, and that his brothers resented him so much that they planned to kill him outright. But they ultimately decided to sell him into slavery instead, and lied to their father after dipping his coat in goats blood and presenting it to Jacob saying that they had found it, leaving Jacob to believe that Jacob was dead.
Joseph however winds up in Egypt, becomes the trusted servant of an Egyptian named Potiphar, is falsely accused and thrown into prison, and eventually has the opportunity to interpret Pharoahs dream that tells of 7 years of plenty followed by 7 years of famine, and in response Pharoah places Joseph over all the land to oversee the efforts of collecting enough grain to survive the famine, where Joseph meets up with his brothers some 22 years after they sold him into slavery.
They do not recognize him, but of course Joseph recognizes them, he has treated them harshly, accusing them of being spies and convincing them to bring Benjamin with them so that they would all be there in Egypt
And in chapter 44 he tested his brothers to see if they would turn on Benjamin the way that they turned on Him 22 years ago, and of course as we saw at the end of 44, they do not, in fact Judah is now pleading for Benjamin to be spared and to take his place.
I think it is fair to say that most people if they place themselves into Josephs shoes, or sandals, or whatever they wore back then,
Revenge.
It’s time to pay them back!
Throw them into prison for some years and see how they like it.
Take them away from the only families that they have ever known and see how well they deal with the stress and sadness!
But that’s not at all what we are going to see Joseph doing in this moment.
And if we have been paying attention we’ve had some hints at Josephs heart. He has on numerous occasions had to leave their presence in order to weep, once when Reuben expressed grief and reminded them of what they had done to Joseph, and he also wept when he saw Benjamin upon their return. It certainly doesn’t seem to us as readers that Joseph is as hardened of a man as he has portrayed to his brothers, but still we think that he would be completely within his rights to make right the wrongs that they committed against him. To serve cold hard justice to those who have done wrong.
In fact, I think that very thing might be what went through His brothers minds here at the beginning of chapter 45. Let’s pick up in v. 1.
1 Then Joseph could not control himself before all those who stood by him. He cried, “Make everyone go out from me.” So no one stayed with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. 2 And he wept aloud, so that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard it. 3 And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed at his presence.
Gen 45:1-
There’s a word that we would use for the feelings that his brothers must have been feeling in this moment, that word is dumbstruck, or unable to speak.
Can you imagine what they must have been thinking?
Perhaps at first they might have been greatfull that he was alive, after all, they had seemed to show remorse for what they had done and had changed their ways, but that happiness would no doubt soon turn to terror as they realized that they had indeed done much worse to this powerful ruler of Egypt than to steal his silver cup as they had been accused of.
I can imagine their knees knocked, and their faces turned pale as they realized that this powerfull Egyptian man standing before them had complete power over their fates. What would they say? What could they say? They might have been in their minds coming up with how exactly they were going to beg for their lives.
Perhaps they thought, I’ll tell him I was just a foolish and jealous man, that I know that I was wrong. Or maybe some of them were thinking about how they might be able to bribe their way out of it by offering him large sums of money.
And surely we think, that Joseph is going to make them squirm, make them drink the bitter cup of justice in this moment. LET THE BEGGING COMMENCE BEFORE THE SINNERS RECEIVE THEIR JUSTICE!
Gen 45:4-
4 So Joseph said to his brothers, “Come near to me, please.” And they came near. And he said, “I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. 5 And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life. 6 For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are yet five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. 7 And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. 8 So it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt.
Wait a minute, there is no begging. There is no punishment. In fact, the brothers don’t even ask for forgiveness!
Instead what do we see from Joseph?
Pure MERCY. He doesn’t offer them any form of punishment at all! No prison time, no hard labor, no executions. That alone would be an incredible thing, but Joseph offers them even more than that, He offers them peace and total forgiveness.
He says in v. 5, do not be distressed or angry because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life.
But not only does he offer them mercy. It would have been merciful just to forgive them and let them buy grain and go home and to treat them just like any other paying customer.
Instead what does he tell them?
9 Hurry and go up to my father and say to him, ‘Thus says your son Joseph, God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; do not tarry. 10 You shall dwell in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your children’s children, and your flocks, your herds, and all that you have. 11 There I will provide for you, for there are yet five years of famine to come, so that you and your household, and all that you have, do not come to poverty.’ 12 And now your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see, that it is my mouth that speaks to you. 13 You must tell my father of all my honor in Egypt, and of all that you have seen. Hurry and bring my father down here.” 14 Then he fell upon his brother Benjamin’s neck and wept, and Benjamin wept upon his neck. 15 And he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them. After that his brothers talked with him.
What Joseph offers them is more than grace, more than pure forgiveness, he offers them a better life than they could have ever dreamed of. A life in the land of Goshen, in the best part of the land, It seems as if Joseph is rewarding his brothers instead of giving them what they deserve. In fact, he’s giving them the opposite of what they deserve, he’s giving them life when they deserve death, he’s showing them favor when they have not earned any favor.
Gen 45:
The word for this kind of behavior is one that we should know well as followers of Christ. What Joseph is showing his brothers is unmerited favor, or simply GRACE.
16 When the report was heard in Pharaoh’s house, “Joseph’s brothers have come,” it pleased Pharaoh and his servants. 17 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Say to your brothers, ‘Do this: load your beasts and go back to the land of Canaan, 18 and take your father and your households, and come to me, and I will give you the best of the land of Egypt, and you shall eat the fat of the land.’ 19 And you, Joseph, are commanded to say, ‘Do this: take wagons from the land of Egypt for your little ones and for your wives, and bring your father, and come. 20 Have no concern for your goods, for the best of all the land of Egypt is yours.’ ” 21 The sons of Israel did so: and Joseph gave them wagons, according to the command of Pharaoh, and gave them provisions for the journey. 22 To each and all of them he gave a change of clothes, but to Benjamin he gave three hundred shekels of silver and five changes of clothes. 23 To his father he sent as follows: ten donkeys loaded with the good things of Egypt, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain, bread, and provision for his father on the journey. 24 Then he sent his brothers away, and as they departed, he said to them, “Do not quarrel on the way.”
Gen 45:
What an emotional roller coaster ride it has been for the brothers right?
They have gone from thinking they are going to lose Benjamin
To thinking they are going to all be destroyed
To finding out they Joseph forgives them, and not only that, but they he’s going to make them prosper in the land
but the roller coaster ride isn’t over just yet. There is a lie that is about to be exposed to Jacob. The chickens have come home to roost as they say, and a 20+ year old lie is now going to be exposed in all it’s ugliness.
Have you ever had to fess up to a lie?
I* Dog barking story
Now Joseph makes a request of them as they leave out of Egypt to go get Jacob
DO NOT QUARREL ON THE WAY!
Do you think they needed this advice?
25 So they went up out of Egypt and came to the land of Canaan to their father Jacob. 26 And they told him, “Joseph is still alive, and he is ruler over all the land of Egypt.” And his heart became numb, for he did not believe them. 27 But when they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said to them, and when he saw the wagons that Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of their father Jacob revived. 28 And Israel said, “It is enough; Joseph my son is still alive. I will go and see him before I die.”
Gen 45:25-
We might expect Israel to rejoice greatly in this moment, after all he’s just receieved some great news!
but he’s also received the news that his sons have committed a terrible sin against him and against Joseph.
And though he is still alive, he’s missed out on 20+ years of life with Joseph because of the sinful actions of his Sons.
And so again I’m sure those emotions are hard to work through as a father, Which shows that even when sins are forgiven, there certainly can be long lasting effects and long lasting heartbreak that results from those sins.
WHAT WE LEARN
We see an amazing display of Mercy and GRACE here from Joseph who reminds us of course of the outstanding mercy and grace that we receive from Christ.
To like the brothers stand before him as condemned by our sins, deserving the just punishment of death, but instead Christ pays the price that we couldn’t pay.
That alone would be incredible mercy! If God offered us a one time forgiveness of sins at some point in our life, that by itself would be mercy.
But more than that God offers us to share in the inheritance of his Son Christ Jesus. He doesn’t just offer us forgiveness, but he invites us into a covenant relationship in which we can walk in the light and the blood of Jesus cleansus us continually it says in .
He offers us hope for that which we don’t deserve, a reunification with the father in the land of heaven.
And because he offers us that incredible grace and mercy, what kind of people are we to be?
Imitators of Christ.
as Paul said in
12 and we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure;
We too are to forgive others:
21 Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” 22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times. 23 “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. 24 When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. 25 And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27 And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. 28 But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ 29 So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ 30 He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. 31 When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. 32 Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ 34 And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. 35 So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”
reminds us of the great ability that God’s people have when they submit themselves to God’s will to extend mercy and grace to others, and to live as sojourners and exiles in this world.